The FMP conducts basic research in Molecular Pharmacology with the aim to identify novel bioactive molecules and to characterize their interactions with their biological targets in cells or organisms. These compounds are useful tools in basic biomedical research and may be further developed for the treatment, prevention, or diagnosis of disease.To this aim FMP researchers study key biological processes and corresponding diseases, such as cancer, aging including osteoporosis, or neurodegeneration. They also develop and apply advanced technologies ranging from screening technologies over NMR based methods to proteomics and in vivo models.

Research Highlights

NATURE PROTOCOLS Imagine tracing the fate of specific cells in deep layers of tissue using minute amounts of an externally triggered contrast medium. The almost unimaginable is within reach today! A new contrast medium in the form of gas vesicles moves this goal (...)[more]

SCIENCE As the cell's molecular control center, the mTor kinase regulates cellular metabolism, growth and division. However, in cells affected by pathological change, the regulation goes array. Therefore, it would be helpful if the central control could be simply (...)[more]

NEURON They are not visible to the naked eye, and yet so many different things depend on them: the vesicles in our synapses. Much research has been done into the fact that these tiny bubbles secrete messenger substances and, in the process, fuse with the cell (...)[more]

NATURE Seeking of food is a crucial survival instinct. However, until recently, little was known about how brain regulates this behavior. Scientists at the Leibniz-Institut für Molekulare Pharmakologie (FMP) and NeuroCure Cluster of Excellence in Berlin (...)[more]

NATURE COMMUNICATIONS When the brain processes olfactory stimuli, it differentiates between similar smells using subtly modulated signals. Brain examinations and behavioral studies in mice have now shown that neurons with inhibiting characteristics play a key (...)[more]

NATURE AND NATURE COMMUNICATIONS The protein α-synuclein plays an important role in Parkinson's and other neurodegenerative diseases. Although a considerable amount is known about the structure of the protein within the Parkinson's-typical amyloid deposits, (...)[more]